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NEED TO KNOW
A 5-year-old boy has died after getting his arm caught in a moving walkway at a ski resort in Hokkaido, Japan
The incident occurred in the morning of Sunday, Dec. 28, while the boy was riding with his mom
Hokkaido Police are investigating the incident, according to local media outlet The Asahi Shimbun
A 5-year-old boy has died in a skiing accident in Japan.
On Sunday, Dec. 28, a customer was fatally injured after getting caught in an outdoor escalator while visiting the Asari Ski Resort in Otaru, Hokkaido, the resort said in astatement. The victim was identified as 5-year-old Hinata Goto, according to the Japanese newspaperThe Asahi Shimbun.
"A serious accident occurred on the escalator connecting the parking lot and center house at around 10:12 a.m. on Dec. 28, in which a customer was caught in the escalator and died," the resort said.
Hinata had been riding on the belt-conveyor escalator with his mother and had tried to get off the 30-meter walkway when he fell on an outdoor escalator and got his arm caught in the winding mechanism at the top,The GuardianandThe Asahi Shimbunreported.
At around 10 a.m. local time on Sunday, Hinata's mother called emergency services "about her son being caught in the escalator." Hinata was freed from the escalator around 40 minutes later but fell unconscious, per the outlets. He was later pronounced dead at the hospital.
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The Asahi Shimbunreported that no staff members were allegedly in the area where the boy got caught in the escalator. General manager of the slope, Kensuke Tamagawa, told the outlet that staffers were instructed not to go near the escalator for safety reasons.
A maintenance cover is installed at the escalator's endpoint, which is designed to stop should an object get caught, as a safety mechanism. This, however, was not activated when Hinata was caught, officials toldThe Asahi Shimbun.
According to the outlet, Hinata's mother had to push the emergency stop button installed at the end of the escalator instead for it to come to a stop.
The Hokkaido Police are investigating the incident, perThe Asahi Shimbun.
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The Asari Ski Resort continued in its statement, "We would like to express our deepest condolences to the family of the deceased customer and offer our heartfelt condolences to the family. We would also like to offer our deepest apologies for the occurrence of such a serious accident at a facility operated by our company."
The company said that it is fully cooperating with the police investigation following the incident.
"[We] are inspecting the relevant facilities and carrying out confirmation work to prevent a recurrence. Going forward, we will make responding to the bereaved families our top priority and work with all our heart and soul," the resort added.
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PEOPLE has contacted the local police for comment.
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